Black or White
by Harryfan011
Summary: This story revolves around the relationship of Neal and Sara Caffrey. Neal is working as a special agent for Secret Intelligence Services (SIS). Their peaceful life is sent into a frenzy when Sam comes with a request for Neal to go in for a special assignment.


**Author's Note:-First of all, I hope that you'll like the prologue. This chapter focuses on Sam and a character I made for this chapter. Please, I would really appreciate your opinions and views regarding this chapter. **

**I would take this opportunity to thank foamskyandsea and IaMcHrIsSi for beta reading this chapter. Without their support, this chapter would not be the same. Now, I hope you read and ENJOY.**

Darkness- as far as any mortal being could see; everything was shrouded by a cloak of black color, known to humans as night. One cannot see but only sense and feel the presence of another living being nearby. The eerily stillness of the night was broken by a howl, most likely from a wolf.

But, none of this mattered to Robin Blake. He, like the devil, hid in the shadows waiting for the perfect opportunity to silence his next victim. He was a senior field operative of Secret Intelligence Services or SIS. In other words, a spy and a master assassin who was skilled in the art of lying. He was solely concerned with his task and nothing else. He was standing outside of an old ruined building in between the deserts of Arizona.

This old mansion might be of no significance to civilians but for a few select number of people whose existence were hidden from the common public; this insignificant location was more valuable than any gold reserve. The reason- because below this building was the operational headquarters of National Security Agency or NSA. His mission was to infiltrate the base and collect information, which held the potential to cause an uprising which could turn the Land of the Eagle to enter a state of chaos.

And, finally after toiling hard for almost two months, he stood just few yards away from this prized location. And, suddenly, he spotted two people coming out of the ruined mansion, laughing without a care in the world, completely unaware of their impending fate.

'Idiots, don't even know how to hold stealth. Now, time to go back to work.' Blake muttered under his breath as he moved in position to end their lives. And, in a blink of an eye before any of the two targets could become aware of his presence, two bullets pierced their skulls, as they were drowned in their own blood. Blake continued on his path after hiding their bodies in the nearby trashcan.

He entered the mansion stealthily like a predator moving forward to bury their teeth in their innocent preys. Soon, he found the entrance to the underground level where the base was situated.

'_Had to admit that Americans definitely knows how to hide their whereabouts but if they could have trained their people in the art of keeping their big mouths shut, then … but no worries, that's what I am here for, to take advantages of their mistakes._' Robin smirked at his thought before moving in the shadows avoiding other occupants of the base who were going back to their families to take a well deserved rest, unknown to the fact that their base was being searched for its secrets.

After searching the base for almost half an hour, he finally found out the door which guarded the classified information for which he wasted two months sacrificing his vacations in Havana, Cuba.

"After this, I'm going to Hawaii for some relaxation time and maybe I could try my alluring charm on some local girls," he smiled as he plugged his mobile phone to hack the code and steal the necessary information.

But, in that god forsaken place, he was not the only one trying to gain access to the darkest undisclosed secrets of the US Army. But, unlike him, others were sent here by someone who was afraid about the consequences; he and his mates have to suffer if this information ever saw the daylight again.

Robin Blake, with the passage of time, living in the world of espionage learnt the technique to hide his emotions from his enemies and was usually very calm and composed even in the time of grave danger. But, what he saw on the screen, his eyes almost bulged out of their sockets as he read the names appearing on the screen.

"Well, well. Look like we're not the only ones here tonight, Johnny" somebody said from behind him but before he can turn to rip their heads from their necks, a fist smashed his face as he fell to the ground.

Before, he could stand back on his two feet; he was hauled against a wall and met with a series of punches and kicks which left his body aching in pain. His vision started to blur and soon, he lost consciousness.

Robin Blake regained his consciousness after a few minutes but found that his hands were tied behind his back as his attackers leered at him.

"Well, let's see our guest of honour has finally joined us for a party. I'm glad that you are awake" a burly man who looked like he was in his mid forties said to his friends whose faces were hidden by black hoods.

"I admit that you have guts to still stand here. I thought that you bastards ran away to hide in your dirty holes." Blake replied smoothly as he tried to release his hands tied around his back.

"Oh my, we found a man of big words. I envy you, you know. Want to know the reason?"

"I see you are charmed by my looks. Well, I don't blame you since nobody can escape my aura but I thought that only beautiful ladies are attracted towards me but I guess, I'm wrong since I can also attract pigs like you." Blake said smiling at his captor who was glaring daggers at him.

"Oh no, you're completely wrong my dear friend. I envy you because you will be soon experiencing the pain, very few people did. You know, burning like dry leaves. I can just imagine the screams coming out of your mouth as your body writhes in agony. I wish I had a camera to record you as you turn to ashes but alas, don't worry, my memory is strong. I'm pretty sure that I will always remember you. Now, let's get this bonfire started." The leader of this group sarcastically replied to him as he commanded his comrades to bring the containers filled with petrol.

"Ah, I see you have decided to have a campfire. It reminds me of my childhood days. But, you know the best part of the camping is the sharing. It is definitely the perfect way to spend time with friends. I assure you that you all will be a part of this camping experience."

As soon as Blake said those words, all hell broke loose. He was successfully able to release himself and before anybody else could react, he was able to reach his gun and aimed at the container filled with petrol.

'_Goodbye, Sammy boy. Thanks for making my boring life worthwhile_' was the last thought of the life of Robin Conan Blake as the headquarters of NSA and the mansion was engulfed in flames.

Time: 9:00 a.m. Location: CIA Headquarters, Washington D.C.

Samuel Philips entered his office at the headquarters of the country's most secretive law enforcement agency whose job was to eliminate any kind of threat to the people of the US. And, he, being the Director of Intelligence, knew this better than any other person working under him in this office.

When he opened the door, he was mildly surprised to see his long time friend and the Additional Director of Intelligence, Mark standing inside his office looking quite tense.

"Buddy, is something the matter?" questioned Sam to his friend who was completely taken off guard as he quickly turned towards him with his gun in his hands.

He released his breath and his shoulders sagged when he saw that it was Sam who questioned him, "Sorry, Sam. I guess I was just startled to see you. Actually, I'm here to talk to you about something which happened last night in Arizona."

"It's okay, mate. So, why are you so uptight? Is everything fine?" Sam replied lightly with a smile trying to hide the fact that his stomach was in knots in anticipation.

The only thought which was running in his mind right now, '_Rob told me that he is going to Arizona to finish his mission. He told me that he knew where those files which hid the information of the people who traded the secrets of the US Defense Department with our enemies. What if something happened? Did Robin was caught? No, he's one of the best and he can't fail. I'm sure of it._'

He was so engrossed in his musings that he didn't even listen to a single word spoken by Mark but he was pulled out of his reverie when he felt that somebody was shaking his shoulders, which he realized was Mark.

"Hey, is something wrong? As soon as I started talking, you … kind of drifted to your own world. I'm sure you haven't heard even a single word." He said to Sam who was stroking his nearly white hair with his hands, clearly embarrassed.

"Sorry. It's just that … but that is a talk of another time. I see that you have some urgent information and I, again apologize for making you wait."

"Don't worry, mate. Well, I got a call from the Chief of Defense of the state of Arizona that last night, after midnight, a place exploded into smithereens and the explosion was so intense that the people living in the nearby areas thought that somebody has dropped a nuclear weapon."

"Do they require CIA to help in their investigations? Are they thinking that somebody from another country is targeting our homeland?" Sam questioned anxiously. He had an intuition that he will not be very happy after hearing this news.

"Well, according to the sources, a mansion which was supposedly uninhabited became a ball of fire around 3:30 last night. The investigations done by the FBI and the local police department earlier this morning suggest that the explosion occurred due to the burning of fuel most probably gasoline or petrol."

"Well, that doesn't make any sense, particularly after the fact that the place was empty. And, this case has definitely caught my attention but I still don't see how CIA comes into play since our main job is to counter national threats not solving cases of local importance." Sam replied after contemplating about the report given to him.

"Well, I also thought on the same lines and denied any requests made by the local law enforcing agencies to aid them. But, just an hour ago, I got a call from Pentagon or more specifically, Head of NSA. I think after you will hear this, the reason behind this unusual fire will become clear. "

"Well, now you have made me really curious. Come on, don't keep me waiting."

Mark took a long breath and spoke with absolute calmness that made Sam completely sure that this has something really serious has happened, "He told me that the mansion was of no significance but under the ruined building was the Headquarters of NSA whose location was only known to some few hundred people. He told me that not even the General of the Armies or the President knew of its existence. He told me that he has sent his best agents to find the reasons behind this incident."

"Well, that changes the picture. Tell him that we will help them in their investigations and send our best agents to help them out."

"Already did."

"Well, that's good, Mark. So, any information or did they find any other evidence on the crime scene?"

"Well, good to see you're back in business. Well, yes they informed that they have found evidence that indicates to fact that somebody tried to infiltrate the base."

"Are you sure? Well, you mentioned that only few knew of its position, so the only concrete possibility is that somebody must have leaked the information because otherwise I'm pretty much sure that nobody could have found out the exact coordinates of the base. So, any ideas who might have dared to do this?"

"I completely agree with you on that theory. Well, we have found the person or I might persons who were courageous as well as foolish enough to enter the base. The NSA agents found bodies of five people who were turned into soot in the main control room of the headquarters."

"Well, so at least, we'll be able to pinpoint the organization that was behind this episode."

"Well, that's were, we hit a dead end since the people who did this was at the centre of the explosion and you can very well imagine the condition of their bodies. Their corpses are of no use to us since and, well … the blast had completely erased any chance of us to identify them. Hence, we're back to square one."

"What else did we lose in this fire?"

"Well, Sammy boy, this is going to sound really bad. Practically, we lost everything from the base to the classified information stored in their databases. But, at least, they were sensible enough to create a back up but even then, it will take them some months to recover from this incident."

"Anything else?" Sam asked his long time friend who shook his head in negative, "Well, thanks for updating me on this occurrence, Mark. Please inform me of any other newfound information regarding this incident. We need to solve this case very quickly and ask the Senator of Arizona to hold a press conference to address the media before they start poking their noses in our investigations."

"Okay, boss. See you later." With this, Mark bids goodbye and went outside to head to his own office. Finally, Sam sat on his chair and realized that his hands were shivering and goosebumps appeared along his arms.

For the first time, he was afraid. Afraid that his one of his oldest friends was dead because of his request to find clues to pick out traitors who were betraying the trust put on their shoulders by the citizens of the United States of America. He, with clammy hands opened his laptop and what he saw nearly made his heart stop beating for a few milliseconds.

On the desktop, he saw two messages from Robin. Anxiously, he opened the first email. As soon as he read the message, his eyes filled with tears as he stared at the message. It was written that:

**Hey Sammy,**

**Dude, your request will soon be completed by my charming self. The information, you require to take down those scumbags will be in your hands by the time you drink your coffee in the morning. The information is in NSA Headquarters in Arizona.**

**Till next time from your awesome friend, Robbie.**

Sam was completely stunned. He couldn't believe that his request was the reason behind the death of his best mate, "I am so sorry, buddy. If I hadn't made the request, you would still be here cracking jokes." Sam mourned for his lost friend for few more minutes before he was able to compose himself and with a heavy heart, he opened the second message.

Once he read the message, his face lightened up as he smiled, '_I see, you still are a man of words, Robbie even in your last moments. He must have been interrupted in hacking the database since the list looks incomplete and lacks the detail, but if I could prove that they were guilty, then these could expose other people. Don't worry; your sacrifice will not be wasted. But, one minute, that reminds me that I need to inform him about Robbie's death. And, he'll definitely be not happy at me. Oh boy, what I have done? God, please have mercy._'

And, with that thought in mind, he called his secretary to inform about his intentions to take a leave for few days to meet his family.

**A/N:- Good, bad ... please tell me your reviews about this chapter. Your suggestions are always welcome. I apologize to all those who were waiting for a glimpse of Neal and Sara's married life. Don't worry, the next chapter will focus on them.**

**Till next time,**

**Harryfan011 **


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